Not So Sneaky

As I stared down at Annie, who was trembling in my arms as she cried hysterically, a rush of emotions passed through me. The muscle in my jaw ticked angrily as I tried to shift through how I was feeling while struggling to keep both mine and Kraven’s need to kill something from flowing through our link with Annie. She was already upset, and the last thing I wanted to do was scare her. We were in a very fragile place. If I fucked up now, I would lose her. And that was the one thing that I would never be willing to do.
“Shhh, Annie, my sweet, sweet, love. Shhh. It’s okay,” I told her soothingly, trying to calm us both down.
“I-I can’t,” she whimpered. “What are we going to do?”
Her arms wrapped around my neck as she buried her face in my chest. I ran my hands down her back, still murmuring softly to her until she was only sniffling. My hands slowed to a stop on her lower back, where I began to gently rub in little circles.
“Do you feel better, little one?” I asked softly.
“Yes. Do you?” She answered, throwing my question right back at me.
“I’m fine. Not upset at all,” I told her.
“You’re a liar, Gerry.” She pulled back to stare at me fearfully. “I didn’t mean it like that! I just meant that I felt you tense and your jaw ticking against my forehead. And your heart beat slowed down, and that only happens when you’re angry and want to hurt something, and—”
I pressed her face back into my chest to silence her nervous babbling. “It’s okay, Annie.” I moved my hands up and down her back again, careful to avoid touching her ass. “You’re right,” I admitted. “I am feeling some type of way, but I am not angry with you. I would never hurt you, Annie.”
She raised her face to look into my eyes before quietly asking, “Even if I left?”
Kraven started thrashing around in my head, howling and growling threats. He was willing to give Annie up, even less than I was. The only difference between us was he wouldn’t hide it. He would kill whoever tried to take her from us without hesitation. I took a deep breath before smiling tensely at her.
“I would never hurt you, Annaria. I love you too much,” I reassured her before Kraven pushed forward to take over. “Are you leaving us?”
She nuzzled back into us. “No, Kraven.”
I relaxed in our mind, but Kraven wasn’t satisfied by her answer. He narrowed his eyes on her as he searched her face.
“Do you want him?” He snarled, making me yank on him, but he held firm.
She sighed as she lowered her head. “Of course I want him, Kraven.” She wiped a tear off her face as she sniffled. “It’s in my DNA to want him. If you met your fated mate, you would want her too.”
Kraven pulled back anxiously as we instantly became a little aroused as soon as Giselda crossed our minds, leaving me staring down at her anxiously as her nostrils flared, picking up the scent of our arousal. We instantly wanted to claim Giselda, and we almost had. If Annie hadn’t been standing next to me, I probably would have made a very different decision. One that would have cost me everything that was important to me. I lowered my head to kiss her deeply, pouring all of our fear of losing her into it. When I pulled back, Marsha flashed behind her eyes, and I uttered a little growl before pulling her up my body so she was forced to meet mine.
“And you’re sure that you’re not going to leave me?” I asked.
She sighed deeply. “I can’t guarantee anything past today, but right now, I ran to you. Not away from you. Doesn’t that mean something?”
I narrowed my eyes on her as I tried to absorb what she said. What did she mean that she couldn’t guarantee tomorrow? I knew I had almost fucked up, but I hadn’t. Not even when I saw Giselda for the second time. I had been less drawn to her, which reassured me that I had chosen right. Annie was who I belonged with. If she wasn’t, then I wouldn’t be able to fight the pull to Giselda. I pulled my lips back to reveal my teeth.
“So, you do want to leave me!” I accused her angrily.
She reached up to grasp my face in her hands before kissing me softly. “Listen to me, Gerry. Right now, there is nowhere else I would rather be than right here with you. I can’t tell you that we will always be together because either of us could decide that this isn’t what we want, but right now, I don’t think that I will ever want to walk away from you. Instead of worrying about the future, we should focus on today and this moment. I love you. I chose you as my mate. Please, let that be enough for now.”
I groaned as I got up, lifting her easily with me. “Annie, you have given me so much of yourself that even if I did find my fated mate, I wouldn’t be able to let you go. You are my everything. Fated mate or not, you have my heart, and there’s no way that anyone else would ever compare to how I feel about you.”
She leaned against my chest, burying her face in my neck. “Can we go home? My adrenaline is fading, and I really just want to sleep,” she murmured before sighing again. “I really wish Osprey and Scarlett weren’t at the house tonight. I really could use some of your snuggles. It’s been a really rough day.”
“Because of your mate?” I asked.
“Well yeah, but it’s not just that. Scarlett wants me to consider still being the Havana Sleuth’s Alpha Sow,” she admitted.
“And? What do you want?” I inquired.
“This. With you,” she answered.
After walking down the street a few dozen yards, I veered off into the trees to find one of the hundred sets of hidden clothes. As I pulled on sweatpants, I eyed her.
“If you want snuggles, there is something that we could try…”
Her eyes lit up, hopefully. “What is it?”
My hands paused on my drawstring as I debated whether or not to tell her. “I could try to aura him and Scarlett to sleep through the night.”
Her eyes widened. “You can’t aura Osprey, Gerry. He’s too strong. He always has been. Especially with Scarlett by his side.”
I leaned toward her to cup her face. “Yes, but that was before I had you. You’ve marked me, and I’ve marked you. I can pull on Marsha’s power. You two are alphas by blood. Scarlett is alpha by mate bond. Tell me yes, Annie, so I can hold you all night. It’s not just you that needs it.”
She studied my face for a moment before sighing. “Do you promise not to hurt them if I let you pull on us?”
“Yes, Annie. You have my word. He is still my brother, even if we don’t always get along,” I responded.
She searched my face again before nodding. “Okay, Gerry. We can try.” She narrowed her eyes on me. “But you have to promise not to aura me while you’re at it!”
I smiled at her as I leaned toward her to kiss her lips. “I told you I wouldn’t.”
She returned my smile before linking our fingers together. “Can I decide how we cuddle?”
“How do you want to cuddle, Banannie?” I asked, laughing.
“I want to lay on your chest with your arm around my shoulders and my leg over your waist.”
I groaned as I thought about her pressing against me. I may be attracted to Giselda, but even she didn’t have a chance when compared to my beautiful Annie.
“Sounds perfect,” I told her.
As we slowly walked toward our house, I listened to Annie talk about the things she had gotten for it. When she mentioned going to the bookstore but not buying any books, I stopped to turn toward her.
“That’s where you met him, isn’t it?” I almost growled.
She flushed as she looked away from me, and neither Kraven nor I missed the slight shift in her scent, hinting at a rise in her arousal.
“Yes,” she whispered.
“And you said that Scarlett didn’t stay with you when you were looking for books?” I asked as pieces started falling into place.
“Yes. Why?”
“What’s his name, Annie?”
“I-I don’t know. I didn’t ask,” she stammered.
I draped my arm over her shoulders as I steered her toward the house. “It’s okay, Annie.”
When we got to the house, Scarlett and Osprey were waiting on the front porch for us. Scarlett immediately rushed down the stairs to hug Annie.
“Annie! I was so worried. Why did you run away?” She asked, seemingly worried.
As Annie gave a quick excuse, I clenched my jaw tightly as I stared at Scarlett. She knew exactly why Annie ran away. I knew she did. First, Osprey had given Annie that dream about that ‘Logan’ guy, and now Scarlett hadn’t stuck by Annie’s side at the store. This screamed setup, and that only meant two things. One: They knew who Annie’s fated mate was. And two: They were trying to take her away from me, and that would never stand. Trying to take her away from me would end one of two ways. With their death or mine. My eyes swept over Annie’s body quickly before looking back up to see that Osprey was watching me closely. I narrowed my eyes on him. He might love Scarlett, but I loved Annie just as much. I wasn’t going to just lay down and let them destroy us. I hoped Osprey was ready, because I would be coming for him. Him and his little bitch of a mate.